The EU has approved its 18th Russian sanctions package, one of the toughest packages yet.  

EU ambassadors agreed on the 18th package of sanctions in response to Russia’s aggression against Ukraine. EU Foreign Minister Kaja Kallas described this package as “one of the toughest sanctions packages against Russia ever”. She explained that it further restricts the Kremlin’s military budget: An additional 105 ships from Russia’s shadow fleet have been sanctioned. The sanctions also ban the use of the Nord Stream pipelines, lower the price ceiling for Russian oil from $60 to $47.6 per barrel, and impose restrictions on Rosneft’s largest refinery in India.

In total, 22 Russian and two Chinese banks, four companies linked to a Russian private equity fund, 26 new entities connected to the Russian military-industrial complex, and eight companies of the Belarusian military-industrial sector are now under EU sanctions. As a result, the total number of individuals and entities on the EU sanctions list now exceeds 2,500.

Following the EU’s lead, the UK has also reduced the price ceiling for Russian oil. Moving forward, the cost of the Russian oil will be determined by a formula, world oil prices minus 15%.